Mass Effect 1: Sick day
by HotMezoti
Summary: Been sick this last week, so this was the result. Just a little fun while I had a cold. Shepard gets side-lined because of a virus and Garrus helps her out. Lemony fun ensues. Completed story. All characters owned by Bioware.
1. Chapter 1

"Hey, Doctor, do you have something for my throat?" Shepard stopped short and looked around medbay at two engineers, laying down on beds, coughing and sniffing. "Oh shit."

Dr. Chakwas turned towards her. "Not you as well. Come here, let me take a look at you."

Shepard looked at the other crew members as Dr. Chakwas got her instruments. She had been working with them just two days ago on a problem with the wiring on the ship. "Dammit."

"Hold still," Dr. Chakwas reprimanded her and looked in her mouth, then used her scanner on her. She put her hands on her hips, "Well, it looks like you too."

Shepard held out her palm, "Give me some medicine doctor, and I'll be on my way."

She shook her head, "Unfortunately it's not as easy as that. It's a rare and potentially dangerous virus. You'll have to be on isolation for 4-5 days."

Shepard smirked, "You've got to be kidding. Give me the treatment and I'll be on my way."

Dr. Chakwas folded her arms, "I'm not kidding. So far it's isolated to just the three of you, and I intend to keep it that way."

Shepard narrowed her eyes slightly, "You're serious. Look, I understand you are trying to keep everybody healthy and all, but I have a mission to complete, and I'm not going to let a little cold keep me down for a week." She folded her arms in front of her.

Dr. Chakwas walked towards her, "Commander, this virus strain is more than just a common cold. It has potentially dangerous side effects of heart damage, particularly if patients fail to take precautions-"

Shepard held her hand out, "So I'll take precautions,"

"Yes – to rest."

Shepard looked down at the floor, "I can't believe this," she turned to go.

"Wait a minute," Dr. Chakwas called out, "You have to be under isolation, to protect not just yourself, but the rest of the crew."

Shepard turned at the door back to look at her, "There must be some other way."

"There is not, believe me, I've done my research. I have medicine for you to take. You can stay in your quarters, you don't have to be isolated in sickbay. The virus is contagious to humans and Asari, but not Turians or Krogan."

Shepard eyed her suspiciously, "What about you? Don't you have to take precautions?"

Dr. Chakwas waived her off and laughed, "I've been doing this so many years I've got the immune system of a vorcha. I've had this strain of virus before." She handed her a bottle of medication. "I'll come over once a day to check on you and bring you anything you may need at any time. Don't hesitate to call me over the comm. I'm sending information to your computer about the virus and my recommendations. Any questions?"

Shepard set her lips tight, "No."

"Oh, and by the way, don't get any bright ideas. I have full authority to relieve you of command if you go outside of the infection protocol," she looked her in the eye, "Understood?"

Shepard nodded reluctantly, "Yes, understood."

She left medbay and as the doors closed behind her, she muttered, "Great, just great," and stormed off to her quarters. As she entered her room, she looked down at the bottle of pills in her hand and took one per directions. She brought up her computer, intent on getting ammunition to fight Dr. Chakwas' conclusions. Instead she found there was a high rate of organ damage, not just heart but brain and circulatory system as well if the condition was not closely monitored and managed. Excessive heat had to be avoided with hydration and medication a priority.

She clicked off her computer, "Well, that puts the next mission off." She knew the Alliance military didn't fool around. If she tried to push the issue, Captain Anderson would be put back in command, and her record would be soiled. "Guess I'm on vacation – in my quarters." She got up and remembering what she'd read, drank a large glass of water. She changed into her casuals and went back to her computer, doing research. An hour later she started to feel worse, her eyes a little blurred, coughing. She gave up and went to bed.

A ping at her door woke her up. She sat up and put her hand to her head, "Come in," she called out. She yelled a little louder, "Come in!" she didn't want to get up, but she threw her legs over the bed and groaned. She could feel a fever coming on. She couldn't remember the last time she was sick. She got up and went to her door, opening it.

"Garrus."

He stood in her doorway, smiling, "I brought you something to eat. Can I come in?"

"Yea, yea, I was calling out for you to come in, didn't you hear me?" she looked outside her door at a table by the wall set up with bottles.

He went in past her, "It wouldn't open. I think Dr. Chakwas has it locked out so no one can come in, you can only open it from the inside."

Shepard nodded and closed it behind him. She pointed back, "What was that table of stuff out there?"

He put the box of food on her table, "That's a cleaning station. When we leave we have to spray ourselves with sanitizer to avoid spreading germs around the ship." He stood up straight and got a good look at her, "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit."

"You look like shit."

She laughed. She appreciated how he treated her like a friend, not with kid gloves or reverence like some of the others. "Well, having a deadly virus tends to have that effect on you."

He looked concerned, "It's not really that bad is it?"

She shook her head, "As long as I'm a good patient and follow doctor's orders."

"Which I intend to make sure you do."

"Oh, yeah?" she sat down across him at her table and smiled. She opened the box of food, "How do you intend to do that?"

He sat back in his chair, "Doctor Chakwas asked me to come in and take care of you. I'm going to keep you company, bring you food, whatever you need."

"Be my personal butler and nurse?" she grinned at him.

"I prefer to think of it more as your health assistant."

She laughed, "Well, you're the only one I'd like for the job."

"Good. Go ahead and eat. I'll pick out a vid for us to watch. I've downloaded a whole library of ones I think you'll like."

They watched a vid, and Garrus left. Shepard wondered how Kaidan was taking things, she didn't send him a message, but he was sure to know she was sick. Dr. Chakwas had sent out a general message to the crew.

The next morning she woke up feeling much worse. She took a shower, as cold as she could stand it, and put a t-shirt and sweatpants on. She checked her messages, Dr. Chakwas was coming over later to check on her. Garrus had messaged her several times, asking her to let him know when she was up and wanted to eat. Nothing from Kaidan. She frowned. They had a on again, off again relationship going. It wasn't known to most of the crew, but they weren't blind either. She messaged Garrus she was up. He was there in a few minutes with a box of food and a drink.

"Hey, going casual today I see." He put the food down and came over to see her. He took notice of her red, swollen eyes, her demeanor. "Has the doctor been in to see you?"

She shook her head, "No, she messaged me she'd be over this morning."

He sat down next to her on her bed, "You sound bad too. Have you taken your medicine this morning?"

She shook her head no. "I have to take it with food."

He jumped up and starting setting her food up on the table, "Then sit down and eat. I brought you something to drink too." He looked around and grabbed the medicine from her desk and put it next to her plate. He brought up his omni-tool and messaged Dr. Chakwas to come over.

She stood to walk to the table and ended up falling back down on the bed. Garrus ran over and grabbed her elbow to steady her. "Take your time, I'll help you." She nodded and stood up again, getting her balance before attempting to take a step. Garrus held her by the waist and her arm and slowly walked her over to the table. He gently helped her down on the chair as Dr. Chakwas came in the room. He looked up at her, "She looks much worse today doctor."

Dr. Chakwas walked over and started scanning her with her equipment, "I expected as much. Today and tomorrow should be the worst, then you should start getting better." She gave her a shot. "This should help your immune system. Be looking for signs of vomiting, disorientation. Anything out of the ordinary, let me know." She sighed, "I'd be able to monitor you better if you were in medbay, you know."

Shepard squinted up at her, "The fact that I'm not on Virmire right now is a compromise already, doctor."

Chakwas rolled her eyes and Garrus chuckled. She left her quarters and Garrus turned to her, "Go ahead and eat. I'm going to go out and get some more things to stock up, I'll be back soon."

Shepard nodded and ate the meal he brought her and took the medication. The shot helped, and she did feel a bit better. She got up and went to her bathroom. She heard the ping at her door while she was in, and struggled to hurry up and come out to open it.

Garrus was standing there with a bag and some more boxes of food.

"I've got to give you a code or something so you can go back and forth." She said. He came in the room and put the boxes in her cabinets.

"Here's some food for the today, some snacks and things."

She nodded, "I figured you'd have to get back to work."

He shook his head, "No, calibrations are up to date. Won't be a big deal for a day or so. We're not taking the Mako out anytime soon." He pointed to his duffle bag, "I'm staying here tonight. You need someone to make sure you're okay."

She raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Oh, you don't have to do that, I don't want to put you out."

He stopped and turned towards her, "You're sick and you need someone watching over you. That's me. Unless you want to spend tonight in medbay with the engineers."

She shook her head no, "I really appreciate it Garrus."

"I'd rather be here than worried sick about you in cargo bay."

She smiled. "You're a great friend."

The rest of the day she slept a lot with Garrus working on her computer and keeping a careful watch over her. She ate with his encouragement. Later that night, she started to feel more feverish, and Garrus quickly messaged Dr. Chakwas who came over and gave her another shot, but said it was not anything to worry about.

He sat on her bed watching as the doctor left and she held her hand out to him as he took it and started absentmindedly stroking it.

"You worry too much, Garrus." She said, her voice hoarse.

"Battlefield, I can handle. This – is different."

"I don't know what I'd do without you." She smiled weakly.

He cleared his throat, "Well, it's late, so I'm going to get ready to turn in." he stood up and pointed at her couch, "That is definitely more comfortable than my cot in cargo bay."

She looked up at him as he took his duffle bag, "Why don't you sleep in the crew pods?"

He shook his head, "Wrex and I are too large to fit in those. I'll be back in a minute." He went in the bathroom and she lay back on the pillow, feeling the room spinning.

"Ugh, I can't wait for this to be over." She leaned over and drank some of the water he'd left her at bedside.

He came out of the bathroom dressed in loose shorts and a t-shirt. She put the glass down and tried to hide her surprise. She'd never seen a Turian dressed in so little before. He was surprisingly muscular.

He looked around, "You got extra sheets?"

She pointed to a drawer, and he retrieved them, putting them over the couch. He lay down, "Ah, that is much better. And for a bonus, I won't have to hear Wrex snore."

"How do you know I don't snore?"

He laughed, "I'm sure it's nothing like a Krogan. If so, you have a serious problem."

"True." She reached over and turned off the light.

"Jane?"

"Mm-hm?"

"This won't be an issue with you and Kaidan, will it?"

"What?"

"Me staying here overnight. I don't want to cause problems for you. He understands why, right?"

"I actually don't know. I haven't heard from him since yesterday morning before all this happened."

"Indeed – that is puzzling."

She sighed, "Not really, I think it's just more of an indicator that the relationship we have isn't really a relationship."

"Hm."

She turned over in bed in the darkness towards the direction of his voice, "It's not working out. He hasn't messaged me or anything. What kind of boyfriend is that?"

"I see."

She grunted in frustration, "It's probably for the best. It complicates things, you know."

"I suppose."

"Well, it does if you're both in the Alliance. Chain of command and all that. Not that it doesn't happen all the time, they just expect you to keep it under wraps."

"So, things are definitely over between you two then?"

"You know what, I think so. I always got the feeling he only wanted me because of my position, not who I really am. It was all surface, you know?"

"You mean shallow."

"Yes, that's it. Anyway, whatever. I'm not torn up about it. It's not like he's like you."

Garrus cleared his throat, "Well, goodnight, Jane."

"Goodnight, Garrus. And thanks for being here. I feel better that you're here."


	2. Chapter 2

She woke up in the morning and sat up in bed, seeing Garrus coming out of her shower, this time with just a towel around him.

"Wow, Garrus," she said.

"Oh, sorry Jane, I thought you'd still be asleep," he grabbed his clothes and took off back in the bathroom.

She lay back down and laughed, thinking how embarrassed he'd looked. She turned to get up and her head was throbbing. She slowly stood up and walked carefully over to her couch. Garrus came out and chastised her, "You could have fallen again, you should have waited for me."

"You're right, for the chance for you to accidently drop your towel, it would have been worth it," she grinned and started to laugh, but saw him look down and quickly change the subject, getting her food out.

"I can bring it over there if you want to eat there," he offered.

"No, I've got to go to the bathroom first," she held her hand out, "I'm steady, I promise I'll go slow. I think I'm starting to feel a bit better now." She used the toilet and attempted to brush her hair, that made it only more frizzy with the steam from his shower still in the room. She washed her hands and thought over his reaction when she'd made a joke about him losing his towel. He seemed to be more serious with her, maybe the stress of her being sick? She looked at her reflection in the mirror. Was he starting to maybe have feelings for her? She shook her head, no, that was silly. Right? She thought it over as she left the bathroom and he stood up from the table, his own meal set up across from hers. Even with Dr. Chakwas asking him, he was so thoughtful, so solicitous of her. She walked slowly to the table and sat down. "Thanks for getting breakfast ready."

"Of course."

"You working today?"

He nodded, "For a little bit, an hour or two. Then I'll be back."

"You'll have to take the walk of shame out there. You can handle that?" she said with a mischievous look.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you spend the night in my quarters, and you have to walk out there past everyone in the same clothes you wore yesterday-"

"No, I brought a clean set."

"Oh, well anyway, smelling of my peach soap-"

He sniffed his arm, "Is that what it is?"

She nodded, "And they'll all be wondering what we were doing in here."

He chuckled and looked down at his meal.

She watched him for his reaction. "That's what they call the walk of shame, when everyone knows what you've been up to and you're walking back to your place the next day."

"There would be no shame in my walk."

She froze and locked eyes with him.

He broke her gaze, "Anyway, that would be pretty bad for me to take advantage of a sick woman."

"Um, true. I hope you can stay with me a few more days, though. If you don't mind, that is. I have to admit, I enjoy spending time with you."

"You like my butler services, do you?" he gave her a sideways smile. "Don't expect me to continue getting you meals when you're feeling better. What's it called, 'room service'?"

"Well, of course, that's nice, but I – well, I enjoy your company. Especially being sick, it's pretty miserable. I don't know anyone else on the ship who would be picking up my dirty tissues."

"True. Just don't spread it around, I've got a reputation to uphold." He ate his meal and looked over at her. "So how are you feeling today?"

"A bit better. Still crappy, though."

"You look improved, I was very concerned about you last night. I barely got any sleep."

"Really? I was kidding about my snoring, but was it really that bad?"

"No, not that. I kept coming over and checking on you. I wanted to make sure you still breathing okay, that your fever wasn't that bad."

She tilted her head and smiled at him. He was something rare. She was seeing him in a completely different light. She reached over and took his hand squeezing it lightly, "You are very special, Garrus. I am so glad you're in my life."

He stopped chewing and looked at her, silent. Finally he said, "I feel the same, Jane."

Suddenly it was completely obvious to her, and charming at how gentlemanly he was being with her. Not just the past few days, but over the whole time they'd known each other. She continued eating her food and thought about the contrast of him and Kaidan. What a waste of time he had been. At least she'd been smart enough to see it finally. When they finished, she sat back on the couch as Garrus cleaned up the dishes.

"I'm going to get some work done, and I'll see you later. Make sure you message me for anything."

"Okay. See you later."

He left and she pondered about him, what there might possibly be on his side as far as an interest in her. And what were her feelings towards him? She had to admit, it was an easy leap for her from best friend to more. He had so many good qualities she admired, and seeing him on a more casual, personal level, she liked him even more. She went to her desk and did a few extranet searches on human-turian relationships. "Just curious," she said. She made sure to shut it off and went and took a shower. She came out to see Dr. Chakwas waiting for her.

"Just came for your daily check-up," she said, holding up her scanner.

Shepard nodded and sat in her chair, her robe around her. "I'm feeling a bit better today, doctor."

"Yes, I see that. Your temperature is still high, but not as much as yesterday. Your immune levels are re-stabilizing." She took a few more measurements. "Your compatriots in med-bay are a few days ahead of you. They'll be out tomorrow, but it's going to be 3 more days for you."

"That's okay, I've got your assigned nurse helping me out."

Dr. Chakwas put the scanner cap back on and looked at her puzzled, "What?"

"Garrus. You asked him to come keep an eye on me."

She shook her head, "I didn't ask him to do that. He came and asked me what he could do to help your recovery and I sent him the same information I sent you. I assumed you had asked him to come over, knowing he was Turian, he wouldn't get sick. Rather nice of him to do it, isn't it?"

Shepard nodded, "Yes, very."

"Well, I'd better be going." The door pinged and she went to it, opening it for Garrus.

"Doctor, is she okay?" he looked panicked.

She nodded, "Yes, just daily checking in."

"Oh, doctor, could you give Garrus the code you've been using to get in so I don't have to keep getting up to open it for him?"

She nodded and brought up her omni-tool, "Just sent it to you Garrus." She turned to Shepard, "Keep up the good work. You're recuperating well." She patted Garrus on the shoulder, "You're hired." And she left.

"You ever decide to stop chasing a rogue Spectre, I think Dr. Chakwas will employ you." she grinned at him.

He sat next to her on the couch, "No way. Not my thing."

"But you're doing it now," she pressed.

"Yes, because it's for you."

"Oh, I'm special, huh."

"Yes. Very."

She was struck again by his seriousness, she could feel his sincerity. She thought about the research she'd seen on the extranet. Was he doing any research as well?

"Well, how about we watch a vid." He got up and pulled her computer over on top of the table so they could watch it. He brought her a drink and she sipped at it.

"Oh, I almost forgot, how was your walk of shame?"

"My what? Oh, that," he chuckled, "I think I actually did get a few looks from some of the crew. I don't mind."

"Gives them something to talk about, anyway. Did you see Kaidan?"

Garrus looked down at her, "Yes." he frowned.

Suddenly she realized it looked like she was trying to use him to make Kaidan jealous. "I need to send him a message telling him I'm not interested anymore. I think it's pretty obvious, but I like to have closure. Especially since I'm his boss, it's a little delicate of a situation."

Garrus had seen Kaidan in the mess hall, chatting up a pretty crewman. He seemed completely unconcerned about Shepard. He contemplated telling her, but didn't want to hurt her feelings. He'd often wondered what she'd seen in Kaidan, besides the obvious good looks. He'd been able to fool her pretty good about his phony personality, but he was glad she'd started to see through Kaidan, if only for her own good.

"That's a good idea." He turned his attention back to the vid.

She pulled up her omni-tool and typed out a short message and sent it to Kaidan. She turned to Garrus, "Good, that's done."

"That was quick."

"Yes, actually, all of it was." She made a face, thinking back to the awful sex. She snuggled into Garrus' shoulder. She couldn't imagine Kaidan ever, ever doing half of what Garrus had done for her the last few days. And now to know he made up the story about Dr. Chakwas asking him to take care of her, that he'd done it all on his own. She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

She woke up coughing and Garrus looking at her concerned. He handed her a tissue and held a glass of water in his hand. She took the tissue and coughed, then blew her nose in it. "I'm okay," she took the water and took a drink. "Really."

"You hungry? Want some lunch?"

She nodded. She went to bed after she ate, and slept for a few hours. She woke up and looked around the room, "Garrus?"

"Yes-" he called out from the bathroom door.

"Oh, just wondering where you were. What time is it?"

"16:00 hours."

"I've never been so lazy in all my life. This is so weird."

"I'm glad you are, you're getting better. Now that you're up, I'm going to get some more food from the kitchen and I need some more clothes."

She nodded and got out of bed for her bathroom.


	3. Chapter 3

Garrus was in the kitchen rummaging through the supplies. He turned to Liara who was throwing her plate away, "You think she'll like this?" he held up a dessert.

Liara started to speak, when Kaidan's voice came from over his shoulder, "Looks like she's already found something she likes better."

Garrus turned to him, "What was that Alenko?"

He smirked, "I got her message breaking things off. You've set up house with her in her quarters."

"I'm there helping her because she's very sick. Whatever is going on between the two of you is not because of me."

Liara intervened, "He's Turian, he can't get the virus, that's why he's there."

"Yeah, uh-huh." he glared at Garrus.

"Let me ask you something, Alenko. What have you done in the past couple of days for her? Sent her messages, packages, anything to help her feel better? Oh, I know, you put on a mask and visited her? No, I guess you were too busy with other crewmen." He looked over in the direction of the one he'd seen him flirting with earlier.

"She is seriously ill, Kaidan. She's lucky Garrus is there to help her." Liara tried to make things better, but it had the opposite effect.

"Yea, real lucky," Kaidan sneered.

Liara shook her head and walked away.

Garrus got closer to Kaidan, "She's out of your league, Alenko, and you know it."

"Shut your mouth Garrus, or I'll shut it for you." He got in Garrus' face.

Garrus let out a laugh, this little punk was unreal, "I don't have to say anything to her about you, your silence has spoken volumes." He picked up the food and turned to go. He looked back at Kaidan, "Oh, that and another little something of yours," and he held his pinky up and waved it at him, looking pointedly at his pants. He turned the corner and punched in the code as an enraged Kaidan flew around the corner at him.

Garrus stopped him in Shepard's doorway, "Nuh-uh – you don't want to risk getting a deadly virus, now do you? I mean, who would take care of you?" he stepped back and watched as the door closed in Kaidan's red face.

He chuckled and turned back around and put the boxed food on Shepard's table. She got off the couch and walked over, "What was that all about? Was that Kaidan at the door?"

Garrus nodded, "Yeah, we uh, had a few words."

"Really?" her eyes got wide. "What happened?"

He looked at her, reluctant. "He accused me of getting between the two of you and being the reason you sent him the message breaking it off."

"He did?"

"Yup. He made a scene in the dining room."

"Oh my gosh."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, he just really angered me. The way he disrespects you, it's, I can't stand it. I can't stand him." He slammed his hand down on the table.

"What did you say?"

"Ugh," Garrus sat down and put his head in his hand, "I told him I was taking care of you because you were sick and I called him on how he's been ignoring you and flirting with that blonde crewman from navigation. He tried to intimidate me, get in my face. Liara was there, she said something, I don't remember what and she left, then I told him the problems you guys were having were completely his fault."

"Oh," she sat down and looked up at him.

"And, then I may have insinuated that his small penis was a factor as well."

She nearly choked, "What!"

"You said that, something like that. Am I wrong?"

"Well, no, actually. I don't remember telling you that, but, damn Garrus." She put her hand to her head.

"You probably shouldn't have us be on the same team with you on any missions from now on."

"You think?" she shook her head.

"I had to put that little punk in his place. Not too many people were around, and we kept our voices low. It's not as big of a deal as it sounds. I'm, sorry if I've compromised your position. "

"Absolutely not. I wish I'd seen it, actually. What were you saying about him flirting with a crewman?"

"Oh that, sorry, I'd noticed him doing that this week, and before, actually. Sorry to hurt your feelings."

She nodded, "Don't worry about it, I had suspicions. I'm just glad it's over with him, and thank you for defending me. He's a real douchebag, I mean, he's accusing me of something when he's the one who's acting worse."

"Agreed," he looked around the table, "You ready to eat?"

"Yes, definitely." She thought over her time with Kaidan as they ate dinner. She couldn't believe she'd been so snowed by him. She'd had suspicions, felt like she was more invested in the relationship than him, but had no idea how bad it really was. She was glad he didn't have the chance to continue to make a fool out of her. It would be tough enough still having him on the ship. Maybe after this mission he'd put in for a transfer. She pretty much took Garrus with her on every mission. Kaidan just earned himself a seat on the bench with his behavior. She finished her meal as they talked about the vid they'd watched that morning, and their plans to get more supplies after she was off isolation.

He looked over at her, "You look tired."

"I am. I'm going to lay down in bed. Can you put in another vid?"

"Yeah, I'll get it started and then go get my clothes. I forgot to get them earlier." He left her room, wondering if Kaidan might still be hanging around, trying to start something with him, but he retrieved his clothes without incident. A few crew members stopped him along the way, asking him how she was doing, concerned. He let them know she was improving.

They watched a vid, and before she knew it, she was nodding off again. Garrus brought her computer over to the couch and did some work as she slept. He got ready for bed late, and woke her up as he turned the lights off.

"You okay?" he came over and knelt down beside her.

"Yes, can you get me some water?"

"Sure," he got her some and came back quickly.

She reached out and drank it, handing him back the empty glass. "You can sleep here if you want," she patted the bed.

"Uh, I-" he looked at her incredulously.

"Look, it's a big bed, it's more comfortable than the couch, and that way you won't be coming over to constantly check on me. You can look over and see how I'm doing, am I right?"

"You have a point. As long as you're okay with it." He held his hands out questioningly.

"As long as you don't mind sharing my bed with snotty tissues." She started to scoot over.

He got in beside her, "Just keep them over on your side."

She was asleep and softly snoring in a few minutes, and he lay still as possible, his hands over his head. He watched her back facing him as it moved slowly up and down with her breathing. He slept fitfully, leaning over to check on her every time he woke up. He finally relaxed, and fell asleep.

In the morning, he woke up with her sleeping on his chest, her arm around him. Her right leg was wrapped over his two legs. His arm was around her, and he could feel her heat, her breathing on him. He looked down at her, thinking about how Kaidan had treated her so poorly, and how unbelievable it was to him that any guy would treat her anything less than the queen she was. He reached his hand up and picked up her hair, feeling it between his fingers. It was soft, dark with a slight curl to it he'd only seen over the past few days as she'd been showering and leaving it loose and down. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down as the feel of her against him was starting to excite him. "Remember, she's ill, she just broke up with a guy, she's a human probably not into Turians," he looked down as she started to stir and made a delicious soft moan.

"Spirits," he whispered under his breath.

She leaned up with messy hair and smiled at him angelically, "Oh, good morning."

He looked down at her, "Hey." This was going to be hard.

She pushed her hair off her face and propped her chin on her hand that was on his chest.

He pointed at something wet on his chest, "What is that?"

"Hmm?" she looked down, "Oh, that's drool, sorry." She pulled up the fabric of her t-shirt and started wiping it off quickly. She looked at him sheepishly, "I guess you had me out pretty good. You were so warm."

He laughed, "No problem. I'm not so easily grossed out."

She laughed, then it turned into a cough. She sat up and grabbed a tissue, "I guess this past week has proven that to be true." She blew her nose and smiled at him.

He absently put his hand on her knee and slowly rubbed it back and forth. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"You know, I actually feel better. I think I may be able to get out of isolation sooner."

"That's up to the doctor. She's the boss."

"Yeah, I found that out the hard way. You're kind of bossy too." She pointed at him. He laughed at her. "No, it's true," she protested. "You made sure I stayed on the straight and narrow this week."

"Yes, but you were an easy patient to boss around."

"That's because we're a good match." She cocked her head and looked down at him, "We're more equals, we have so much in common."

"Indeed."

"Well, I'm going to take a shower, the steam helps my sinuses. I'll be out in a little bit."

He sat up in bed, "I'll have breakfast waiting for you when you get out. The medication is for today and tomorrow, then you're done."

"Good, it gives me terrible heartburn."

"That's TMI, Jane."

She laughed, "I didn't tell you how it made my pee smell funny," she called from the bathroom doorway.

"You want me to get started on Turian GI issues?" he called out to her.

She poked her head back in the room, "Definitely not. I'm going to end this conversation."

"Thank you," he waved at her.

She went into the bathroom and turned on the shower, smiling. She actually hated to get in the water, she could still smell his scent on her, and she liked it. She was trying to be sexy with him, gauge his reaction when her drool ruined the moment. Oh well, there would be tonight, too. He was staying at least one more day. She couldn't leave to go out and get food until Dr. Chakwas cleared her isolation status. She soaped and shampooed as quickly as she could, and put her robe on. She opened the door and was still combing her hair as she walked out.

Garrus was still in bed, and propped himself up on her pillows to get a look at her. "You definitely are getting much better."

"Yeah, I feel much better too." She combed her long hair out, using her towel to scrunch up the dripping water from the ends. She pointed back, "It's all yours."

"You know, I could get used to staying here, Jane. Comfy bed, personal shower, privacy. Nice."

She put her hand on her hip, "Not to mention the fantastic company."

"And comic relief."

"What? What does that mean?"

"You – you're very entertaining. It's been nice getting to see a more casual side of you."

She frowned, "I don't try to be funny."

"That's what makes it funny. I enjoy spending time with you."

"Well, that makes two of us." She got serious. She started to formulate something to say when Dr. Chakwas came over her omni-tool.

 _"_ _Would it be alright if I came over to check on you now, Commander?"_

"Yes, Doctor."

Garrus got up from bed, "I'll go ahead and take my shower now. You didn't use up all the hot water, did you?"

She made a face and slapped him with the edge of her towel. She sat on the edge of the bed as Dr. Chakwas came in. "How are you doing today?"

She smiled, "Much, much better."

She scanned her with her equipment. "I'm going to give you another shot, but this is the last one. I think this is your last day of solitary. I'll check you tomorrow morning, but you are almost completely over the virus. There will be some residual weakness, symptoms, but you are no longer contagious." She turned as Garrus came out of the bathroom.

"She is doing very well, thanks to you."

Garrus pointed at Shepard, "She's the one who has been through this, I've just been a small help."

"It's worked. We've had no more cases on the ship." She closed up the scanner. "See you in the morning, Commander." She smiled at Garrus and walked out.

"So, what did she say?" Garrus sat next to her on the bed.

"Oh, that I'll still be sick for a few more days, but she anticipates tomorrow I'll be off isolation."

He brightened, "That's good news. You must be getting tired of these four walls."

"Not so much with you here."

He stood up and held his hand out for her, "Let's get something to eat."

That day she got back on her computer and started planning out the next few missions. Garrus spent more time down in the cargo bay, getting caught up on his work. Before she knew it, he was back for lunch, and she took a mandatory break he imposed on her. "You're just barely better. Remember, Dr. Chakwas said you weren't back to work for another three days."

"She didn't say that."

"She did to me when I met her in the hallway a little while ago."

"Okay."

He stood up straighter, "What? Not even a fight?"

"I've learnt my lesson." She said simply.

"That you can't fight both of us?"

"No, that you have my best interests at heart, and I should listen to you."

"Oh. Well, that's true."

She scooted up into bed and leaned her head in her hand, "So, how about watching a vid with me. You are finished with your work, right?"

He shook his head, "Not yet. You get started, I'll be back in a little bit."

"Okay."


	4. Chapter 4

An hour and a half later he was back and she finished the vid, choosing another one with his help. He sat on her bed with her and they watched it together. She lay on her stomach, her head at the end of the bed, Garrus propped up on pillows. He started lightly massaging her legs, initially out of curiosity, then in response to her. "That feels so good. Think you could go up higher?" she turned back to look at him, pointing at her back.

"I'll try." He sat next to her and leaned over her, massaging her back with his hands.

"Ooo, not so hard." She grunted. "Oh, that's much better, yeah." She loved feeling his strong fingers kneading her. "That is helping so much."

"Really?"

"I love feeling your hands on me." She raised her eyebrows, surprised she'd actually said that out loud, but whatever. It was true.

He massaged her for a bit more, then leaned back on the bed. "Thanks Garrus, that was fantastic."

"Any time, Jane."

"Careful what you promise, I'll take you up on it."

"I don't have a problem with that."

She turned her attention back to her computer screen, playing the vid on her table. This was going really well, she thought. She felt tonight she'd be ready to tell him she had feelings for him, and was interested in pursuing them. She felt a jolt of adrenaline. It was always a risk to do that, but she sensed he returned them. The vid over, and she turned over in bed to face him. "How about I get us dinner ready tonight. You've been waiting on me long enough." She got up and started walking to her cabinet where he stored the boxed meals.

"You'll have to eat without me tonight, I'm having dinner with Tali in the mess hall."

"What? Dinner with Tali? Why?" She stopped dead in her tracks.

He shrugged, "She wanted to talk to me, so we're having dinner together."

Her voice became shrill, "But, Tali? I don't see why you're having dinner with her, I mean, how old is she, like 17 or 18 or something?"

Garrus was amused, "I'm not sure how old she is, does it matter?"

"Yes, it does. I mean – " she suddenly realized how angry she was acting. She calmed down, "well, actually it doesn't," she forced a laugh. "I suppose I got used to having you here with me all the time." She shook her head, "I'm just being silly."

He watched her critically, she never did anything silly. "You jealous, Jane?"

She turned beet red, and took her box of food out of the cabinet. "You do what you want, Garrus, I shouldn't have said anything."

He stood stunned, she refused to answer his question, and in doing so, gave him the answer. He walked over to her and took her hand, "I'll be gone for a little while, then I'll be back. I think she had a problem she wanted to discuss with me, you know, like a big brother."

Shepard tried to act casual, "Of course, of course. Please, go ahead, take as much time as you want to, it's not like you're stuck here with me." She smiled at him, "Besides, tomorrow, we're back to things as normal, right?"

"I suppose."

She pulled her hand away as he let it go. "I'll be fine, I'll see you later." She took the box over to her table and started pulling food out.

"Okay. I'll be back soon."

She waved at him as she turned her computer around and pulled up another vid to watch as she started picking at her plate. She heard the door close behind her, and she sat down in her chair, her head in her hands, "I can't believe I acted like that." She replayed it in her mind, her rampant jealousy, his shocked reaction. "Fucking hell." That was not how she wanted to let him know she was interested in him, acting like a psycho. "Maybe he'll take into consideration I'm still sick, or something." She ate and was cleaning up when he came back into her quarters.

"That was fast, did you actually eat?" she cringed inwardly at how that sounded. How would he respond? No, we were fucking in the supply room?

He didn't seem to take it that way, "I ate, she was picking my brain about something she could bring back to complete her pilgrimage."

"Oh yea, she told me about that one day."

He nodded, "She wanted me to keep an eye out for anything that might be of great use to the migrant fleet. She's the daughter of a council member, did you know that?"

"Yes."

"Well, that's a lot of pressure. She has to bring back something really great. She knows I'm on nearly all the missions. I told her I'd help her in any way I could."

Shepard nodded, "Yes, yes, that makes sense." She looked up at him, "She told you a lot, you weren't there for long."

"Well, I wanted to get back to you. I did have to cut her off a few times, she can really go on and on."

Shepard laughed, "Very true."

"She asked me about you, everyone is anxious to have you back out on the bridge."

"I feel the same way."

Garrus looked around, "I'm going to miss staying here with you."

"It's really helped me out a lot, thank you so much for making the sacrifice."

Garrus shook his head, "It was no sacrifice. It was the least I could do. I wanted to make sure you got better, the facts on that virus were frightening."

She nodded. She felt paralyzed, feeling the moment was slipping away, her thoughts unraveling.

"Well, I'm going to get changed. I know it's early, but tomorrow it's back to schedule." He grabbed his duffle bag and went to the bathroom.

She turned away and slammed her hands together, "Dammit." She paced around a little bit. He came out of the bathroom quickly, in his shorts and t-shirt.

"Um, my turn next." She went in her bathroom where she had t-shirts and sweats and shorts on shelves next to the towels. She changed into a tank top and shorts and brushed her teeth. It was now or never. She used the toilet and walked out. To her surprise, Garrus was already in bed, sitting up using her computer.

She walked over and stood at the end of the bed. "What?" he asked her.

"I was just thinking how domestic we were getting." She crawled over the edge of the bed and got in next to him.

"Oh, I guess so."

"Mm hm." She lay down and stared at the ceiling. She thought of different things to say, but rejected them all. After a little while she felt him put the computer down on the side table and lay back, turning to look at her.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked her.

She smiled ruefully. "Oh, I can't really say."

"Can't you?" he asked her, "Since the crew knows I'm sleeping with you, there can't be much more secrets between us."

She rolled her eyes and turned to look at him. "Have you actually ever been intimate with human before?"

"Well, no. But I'm not opposed. What about you?"

She shrugged, "Same."

"Huh. I can't see how it would work logistically, though, I mean, Turians have hard plates and human's skin is so soft."

"It's very doable. The sexual organs are actually quite similar, believe it or not."

"You sound very confident as someone with no experience."

"I looked it up."

He turned on his side to look down at her, "Really? What, like on the extranet? You surprise me Jane."

She felt herself getting red again. "I was – curious, that's all."

"About anyone in particular?"

She looked up at him, was he messing with her? She couldn't tell. "I didn't say that."

"You didn't say no either."

"Ugh," she slammed her hands down against the mattress, "You are very frustrating."

"I've been told worse."

"I bet you have." She realized she had talked herself into a corner again.

"Tali's 22 by the way. I asked her."

Shepard put her hand over her eyes, embarrassed by her earlier outburst. "I thought she was pretty young."

"You're pretty young too, 30. I'm 40."

"That's not that much older."

"But old enough to make anything personal with Tali a bit unseemly. Besides, she's very young and naïve in her personality. You're not."

"That's probably because I've had a harder life. Being orphaned on Mindoir, it makes you grow up faster."

"I believe that. You want to go ahead and turn off the lights? We could both use some catch-up sleep. Now that you're better, I can get sleep without watching you all night long."

She nodded and he reached over and turned the lights off. The dim blue light from the running boards slowly came into focus. He turned back towards her. "You're very beautiful, you know that?"

She laughed, "So you're saying I look good with the lights off?"

He sighed, "No, you look good in every light."

"Well, thank you."

He leaned down and gave her a kiss on her forehead, "Glad you're feeling better, get some sleep." He turned over before she could react. She felt she didn't have an opportunity, and it would be awkward to try and make one. She cuddled up into his back and put her head on the back of his shoulder, going to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

She woke up in the middle of the night and lightly tip toed out of bed to the bathroom. She peed and sat for a while, thinking over what she wanted to say to Garrus in the morning. She got up and washed her hands and opened the bathroom door, surprised to see the lights in her room on and Garrus up out of bed. He was packing his clothes in his bag.

"What's going on?"

"Oh, time to get up. It's 05:15."

"It is? I thought it was still the middle of the night."

"Nope. Back on schedule today." He smiled at her as he continued packing.

She looked at the bed, disappointed. She had it all worked out in her mind, at the very least she had more time planned to be close to him in bed. "But, I wasn't ready to get up."

"That's okay, you can go back if you want."

"No, that's not the point." She walked over to the bed and stood by the edge.

"Sorry?"

"I'm not ready for you to go yet." She smiled weakly.

"Oh. Well, we knew it would be today. You'll be fine here without me. You're pretty much better now. Are you concerned you might pass out or something?"

"No, that's not it." She took a deep breath, "Remember when you said you could get used to living here, the comfy bed, the privacy, the shower. Well," she picked nervously at the blanket on the bed, "Why not? I mean, why can't you continue to live with me here?"

He frowned, "That would be pretty awkward, wouldn't it? We would need two beds, and most Commanders don't have roommates with the rest of the crew, except for Quarian Flotilla ships, probably. This was only temporary to help you out. You said yourself the crew was already suspicious something was going on between us, think of what the rumors would be if we shared quarters. I don't want to cause problems for you. I mean, I appreciate you trying to help me be more comfortable and all, but it's really going out of your way too much."

She nodded silently, "Right." She swallowed hard.

He stood up and got his duffle bag and put it over his shoulder, puzzled, "I'm glad you're better. Don't push yourself too much to go out on a mission too soon."

She put her hands on her hips and continued to look down at the floor so he wouldn't see the blush over her cheeks, "Don't worry, I don't want Dr. Chakwas taking me off command."

He walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. She reached her hand up and patted it, "Thanks for helping me out. You saved me from being stuck in medbay. You were very generous to do it."

"I'll see you later, Jane." He walked out of her quarters and towards the elevator to cargo bay. He thought over her reaction when he left and her offer for him to live with her. "Strange." He said to himself. The elevator doors opened and he walked out towards the Mako.

As the doors closed behind Garrus, Shepard turned to sit on her bed, gripping the sides of the mattress. "Holy hell, what was I thinking." When he misunderstood her, she was mortified. She thought he'd caught on that her feelings had changed. He actually thought she was asking him to be her roommate. She couldn't get the image of his confused face out of her mind. "Jesus Christ, I hope he doesn't mention it to anybody." Her embarrassment was matched by her disappointment. "It wasn't that long ago Kaidan was here with me. He would probably think I'm just looking for somebody to replace him." She huffed in frustration. She wished she'd never gotten with that asshole.

Garrus put his things away and got to work on the Mako. He figured he'd maybe meet Shepard for lunch or something. She was sure to be busy now that she was out of isolation. As he worked on the computer panel, his mind wandered back to their conversation that morning. Something kept bothering him, her demeanor had been upset, clingy almost, and that was not like her. She was never afraid to live alone. She was one of the most badass women he'd ever met. It must be something else. Suddenly it struck him what she really meant. She wasn't looking for a roommate, she was looking for a mate period. He stopped his calculations, his mind raced thinking over what she'd said and her reactions with a different perspective. She couldn't even look at him, she must have been embarrassed. "Spirits, I'm a complete idiot." He never considered his feelings for her would be returned. He thought her flirty comebacks didn't mean anything, just like they'd always done. There had been a seriousness in the past few days, though, she didn't deflect them as much. He picked up his pace to the elevator and made his way back to her quarters.

Still having the code, he walked back in to see her sitting on her bed, her head in her hands.

"Did you forget something?" she asked him looking up.

"Yea, I think I did." He knelt down in front of her and lifted a strand of hair off her face. "Do you want to be in a relationship?"

"What?" she looked shocked.

"Is that what you were trying to say when you asked me to stay here with you?"

She bit her lip, "Um," she searched his face to try and read his emotions.

"Jane, forgive me for being so dense. Tell me, or tell me if I'm wrong."

She sighed, it was no use trying to be coy now. "Yes, Garrus, dammit, I'm doing a terrible job of saying I want to be your girlfriend and would you move in with me."

He was stunned and pulled her towards him into a strong hug. She put her hands around him, but then tried to push him off, "I can't breathe," she said, muffled.

"Oh, sorry," he let go of her. "Then my answer is yes, definitely, I would be honored to be your boyfriend, to stay here with you, and not because of the accommodations, either, because of you." He lightly cupped her face, "I had hoped someday you might start to feel something for me, but I had no idea."

"It came on so suddenly, and it just seemed so right. I honestly think I'm in love with you, Garrus." She closed her eyes, _shit,_ she couldn't seem to stop saying too much.

"I can't believe it." He leaned down and she held her face up and kissed him, lightly on his cheek, on his lips. He returned her kiss and nuzzled into the side of her neck.

"Oh my god, hold me," she reached up her arms and Garrus readily wrapped her up in his, holding her back and reaching his hand up over her shoulder. He felt her small hands run over his back and squeeze him close.

She pulled back and looked at him, "Look, I don't want you to think that I'm one of those who just has to have a guy in my life. Kaidan was a mistake. I've always felt close to you, and you being here the past few days, I realized how much I care about you and want something more. You don't have to move in with me if I'm asking for too much, moving too fast, it's okay. We can start slow, whatever you want." She was breathless, trying to get it all out.

He smiled, "I adore you. There's nowhere else I want to be other than here with you. I don't mind moving fast. If it's right, it's right. We don't know what will happen, every day we put our lives out there, and there's no guarantee for either of us. Let's be together, and be damned to everything else." He leaned down and put his forehead to hers. She gasped, feeling a rush down her body. She held onto him tightly. He backed away slowly.

"What was that?"

"It's a Turian kiss. You're alright, I mean, it didn't hurt you or anything?" he looked down at her.

"No, it was amazing." She looked up at him and was overwhelmed with her need to be with him. She leaned her face up and started kissing him again, licking at his mandibles. He groaned as she put her small fingers around his neck, then slowly snaked them up into his fringe. He grabbed her shoulders tightly as his breathing intensified.

"Jane," he said hoarsely, "no,"

"Mm, yes, yes we should," she continued to kiss him slowly, sucking lightly against his skin.

He pulled her away from him, "We can't.

She frowned, "Are you put off because I'm human?"

"No, no, that's not it. Quite the opposite, actually. You don't know how many fantasies I've had about you, about being intimate with you."

Her eyes lit up, "Oh really?" she started to lean towards him again. He stopped her, "You're sick, I want to, Spirits, so much, but we have to wait."

She sat back on the bed, "Dr. Chakwas said I was over the virus, I feel fine. Trust me," she reached out for him.

"This is crazy," he shook his head.

"I know." She knelt on the bed and took her t-shirt off. "Come here."

Garrus wavered. He got up and crossed his arms, looking down at her, "You are making this very difficult."

"I've done some research, I think we can figure the rest out." She started taking off her sleep shorts.

"Spirits, Jane," he leaned his hands down on the edge of the bed and looked up at her.

She grinned, "Don't be scared." She kicked her shorts off and started wiggling out of her panties.

"I've actually done some research myself," he started unbuttoning his jacket.

"You have? Really?" she reached down and pulled her panties off her foot and threw them across the room.

He nodded, "Enough to write a novel."

"Great. You can show me everything you've learned." She scooted up and pulled the sheet back.

He locked eyes with her as he continued to take his clothes off. She eyed him like a predator. She'd never seen a Turian naked before, and was ridiculously turned on seeing more and more of him. He unbuttoned his pants, and taking them down and off, he stood up at the end of the bed and hesitated. She put her arms up over her on the wall and slowly writhed back and forth. "Don't make me wait. Please Garrus."

He started crawling up the bed towards her and he carefully lay on top of her. She relished in his warmth, the feel of his leathery skin against her. She arched her back to push her body up closer against his. Leaning on his elbow, he tenderly caressed her shoulder, moving his hand down her side and down her thigh. The rough feel of his skin on hers was titillating. She brought her head up and kissed him passionately, snaking her tongue inside her mouth. He moaned and met hers with his. She was drowning in her passion for him, his taste intoxicating. She couldn't get enough of him. Pressing up against him, she couldn't feel his penis. She struggled to remember what she'd read on the extranet, but couldn't remember the particulars.

She patted his back a few times. He broke their kiss, "What is it? What's the matter, are you okay?" he looked concerned.

"Yes, fine, I love how you feel," she threw her head back and squeezed her legs around him, "I uh – where's your penis though?"

"Mm," he leaned down and kissed at her neck, "It's covered by protective plates, it comes out when it's ready."

She pouted, "I want it."

He grinned, "Then you have to coax it out." He propped himself off her a little bit, and she moved her hand on his abdomen and further down. She felt his hard skin, and lightly rubbed over his crotch. Remembering some of what she'd read, she took her other hand and reached it up into his fringe and pulled on it. She watched him growl in pleasure. "I'm so wet for you Garrus. I want to feel you inside me. Don't you want to be inside me? I'm so warm and soft." She felt his plates start to move aside as he started rocking slightly up and down against her hand. She felt the head of his penis start to emerge and wrapped her hand around him, squeezing him lightly. She was breathless with anticipation and some fear as they were definitely going to do this. He didn't take long to fully emerge, and although she couldn't see him, he wasn't too different from humans. The tip felt tapered, the skin leathery, but soft. She moved her hand to hold him back a little and arched up to put his tip at her opening. She moved him around in little circles, getting him wet. As she pushed him inside, she moved her hand away and around his waist, pulling him into her. She moaned as he got deeper inside her. He moved back and forth as she got louder. She started coughing suddenly, and he stopped. "I'm okay, I'm okay, it's just, you know from being sick." she croaked.

"You sure you're up to this?" he asked.

She smirked, "It's a little late for that, don't you think?"

"I – "

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," she started moving back and forth again, "Let's keep going." She wasn't going to stop now for anything. She felt him get bigger inside her, and started to feel some friction. "What's that on you? It feels different."

He grunted, "When I get fully erect it gets bigger and gets raised bumps." He looked down at her, her head back, her mouth half open, gasping. "I read humans don't have those."

"Fuck no, they don't. Damn, Garrus, you feel so, so, oh my god, keep doing that."

He started thrusting harder into her. She felt so much better than he thought she would. He thought it would feel squishy, mushy, but her walls were clamped down on him so tightly and she pushed back against his base with a force that matched a Turian female. The softness of her skin was exotic, entrancing. Her scent that had formerly been a source of torturous sweetness was now his, and mixed with her pheromones, driving him nearly wild. He had thought about being with her like this so many times, but never thought it would become a reality, and she was so into it, wanting him so forcefully. He felt her get tighter around him, and she started to yell out, "Yes, yes, oh fuck, I'm cumming, I'm cumming!" she held herself still and started breathing fast. He continued to piston in her, but it was getting deliciously more difficult as she got tight around him. She continued to climax, and he finally allowed himself to have his release and he spilled out into her. She gripped his hips, holding him against her as she continued to spasm and he slowed his movements. They moved together until they were both spent and he lay down on top of her, holding his weight up. He leaned over her neck and licked her, nibbling his sharp teeth on her. She giggled, "That tickles."

He leaned back to look down at her and she smiled at him with contentment, reaching her hand up to the side of his face. "Garrus, that was fantastic, I loved it. I love you."

"Spirits Jane, I love you too," he leaned back down on her and hugged her.

"Mm, you feel like you're starting to get hard again."

He propped himself up on his hand, "I'm going to take it out."

"Okay, if you have to." She frowned.

He said, "I don't want to make you sore."

She opened her mouth to argue, but as the adrenaline was wearing off, she was starting to feel how much he'd stretched her out and the skin on her thighs were feeling a bit sore. She nodded and relaxed her legs out to her sides. He slowly backed up and she grunted in protest. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yes, it just felt good, I didn't want to stop." She moved to the side and he lay down next to her. She cuddled up to him and he wrapped his arm around her. "I'm so happy Garrus."

He kissed her shoulder, "You have no idea. Looks like you've got a permanent roommate now."

She smiled, "You can bring your things up and move in."

"I would love to. Are you sure that's okay?"

"Yeah, you're not Alliance, we're not breaking any regs."

They lay for a while, fell asleep and Shepard woke up with her alarm. She turned if off and turned around to face Garrus who lightly touched her face with his finger. "I didn't feel too rough on your soft skin?"

She shook her head no, "Well, my legs feel a little raw."

He pulled the sheet down and looked down, "Wow, they're really red." He got a closer look and touched the bright red rash on her inner thigh. She pulled back, "Ow." He looked up at her, "You should put some medigel on that."

"I will. I have to get up now anyway."

"You feel okay inside though, right?"

"Yeah, that feels great." She leaned over and kissed him. "I was a bit nervous, I didn't know how different it would be, but it was a good different. And now I get to have my best friend as my boyfriend. I'm very lucky."

"I'm the lucky one," he replied.

"Then that makes us the perfect match." She smiled. They turned as they heard a noise at the door. Shepard grabbed the sheet and pulled it up on her.

"Just one last check-" Dr. Chakwas stopped dead in her tracks, taking in the scene before her. "Oh, I'm dreadfully sorry, I should have pinged you first, I apologize," she turned quickly and left.

Shepard looked down at Garrus and laughed, "Well, that was embarrassing."

"It could have been worse, if she'd come over sooner."

She thought about it, "Yeah, but she's a doctor. She can handle it." She patted Garrus' chest, "I'm going to take a shower, care to join me?"

"Spirits, yes, but I don't think your thighs could take it. I won't be able to keep my hands off you."

"Mm, I'll take a raincheck on that." She stood up and brought up her omni-tool, "I'll message Dr. Chakwas to come over in – how long?"

"45 minutes should do it."

"Okay."

Forty-five minutes later an apologetic Dr. Chakwas came to her quarters and a freshly showered Shepard and Garrus were eating breakfast.

Shepard waved her off, "Don't sweat it doctor, you didn't see anything I'm sure you haven't seen before." She pulled her chair back so she could examine her.

Dr. Chakwas scanned her. "Yes, everything looks normal, you can go ahead and leave your quarters. Again, no away missions for 2 days. I would say three, but I know how you are."

"Could I go out on the Citadel to get supplies?"

"Yes, I don't think that would be a problem." She started packing her equipment up.

"Oh, doctor wait, there's one more thing I need you to look at," she pulled her robe apart and showed her the red rash on her thighs.

"Hm, I don't remember that –"

"No, that's from Garrus and me, this morning."

"Oh, oh, I get it. Well," she stood up, "I admit I don't have much knowledge of cross species intercourse, but I will do some research and get back to you. It does look like a rub rash. Any other issues?"

Shepard shook her head no.

"Come over to medbay and I'll put some medigel on you." She turned to go, "And for what it's worth, I'm happy to see you two are together."

"Thanks doctor," Garrus said.

Shepard smiled and took Garrus' hand.

He turned to her, "You know Kaidan's going to think he was right all along, that I was in here coming on to you, and that's why you guys broke up."

"The funny thing is, he turned out to be right. Seeing how you treated me and cared for me made me realize what an asshole he is and the final death-nail in what little of a relationship we had. You being here made me realize how much I actually cared about you. He was wrong about the come-on, it was me coming on to you. But I don't care what he thinks. All I care about is you, and us making a life together."

He leaned across the table and put his forehead to hers. He pulled back, "I will cherish you for the rest of my life."

-END-


End file.
